COMMERCIAL PAPER 



1513 COMMISSION FORM OF GOVERNMENT 



rules constituting this law is to a great extent 

 uniform throughout the commercial world, the 

 treaties and decisions of one country being 

 applicable to the questions arising in any 

 other, with due allowance for local differences 

 of commercial usage. These rules embrace the 

 law of shipping, bills of exchange, insurance, 

 bankruptcy, brokerage, partnership, negotiable 

 paper, promissory notes, contracts, etc. In the 

 United States the term includes the law deal- 

 ing chiefly with contracts. Much of the law on 

 these subjects is of ancient origin, being de- 

 rived from the Roman civil law, the custom 

 of merchants and international law. See CON- 

 TRACT; NOTE, and other subdivisions named 

 above. 



COMMERCIAL PAPER, a term synonymous 

 with NEGOTIABLE PAPER, which see. 



COMMISSIONER OF EDUCATION. See 

 EDUCATION, subtitle Commissioner of Educa- 

 tion. 



COMMISSION FORM OF GOVERNMENT, 

 a city government born of the flood disaster 

 which devastated Galveston in 1900. That dis- 

 aster disorganized the usual forces of law and 

 order and left the city temporarily at the mercy 

 of groups of plunderers. Three men emerged 

 from the crisis, took power into their own 

 hands and were valiantly supported by all 

 good citizens. These self-appointed men exer- 

 cised for a brief time all the powers formerly 

 held by the city council, mayor, chief of police 

 and police judge. So successful was this tem- 

 porary government with powers in the hands 

 of three men that Galveston adopted the plan 

 permanently, and called it the commission 

 form of government. 



Within a few years other cities one by one 

 hesitatingly tried the same experiment; it met 

 every condition of local government and the 

 plan spread rapidly. Commission government 

 has since replaced the old forms of municipal 

 government in hundreds of cities and towns. 

 This governmental form merges the legislative 

 duties, formerly exercised by a city council, 

 and the executive powers, formerly held by a 

 mayor, in a small commission, usually com- 

 posed of five members. This commission is 

 elected by the citizens at large, without regard 

 to ward boundaries, class distinction or party 

 politics. 



Advantages of the System. The first great 

 advantage of the commission plan of govern- 

 ment is that it concentrates power and respon- 

 sibility in a few hands. In other words, it 

 makes the government of the city more like 



that of a business corporation, in which large 

 powers are placed in the hands of a small board 

 of directors. 



A second advantage of the commission form 

 is that it lessens the influence of political par- 

 ties in local affairs. In the election of commis- 

 sioners, nominations by political conventions 

 and the use of party names and symbols are 

 commonly done away with. The voters, hav- 

 ing to choose but three or five men instead of 

 a host of officials, can exercise wisdom in their 

 balloting. The names of candidates are printed 

 in alphabetical order, without party name or 

 emblem. 



Working Plan of the Commission. The law 

 of Iowa, which may be taken as typical, divides 

 the different departments as follows: 



Department of Public Affairs, with the mayor 

 at the head. 



Department of Accounts and Finance. 

 Department of Streets and Public Works. 

 Department of Parks and Public Property. 

 Department of Public Safety. 



The five members of the commission sitting 

 together decide policies, pass ordinances, levy 

 taxes and make the city budget. The com- 

 missioners give their entire time to managing 

 the affairs of the municipality, and receive ade- 

 quate salaries for their services. 



The Des Moines Plan. The form of govern- 

 ment now known as the Des Moines Plan dif- 

 fers considerably from that which originated 

 in Texas. Fundamentally, it is the usual com- 

 mission plan, with certain important additions, 

 including the referendum, the initiative, the 

 recall and non-partisan primaries. 



The citizens have the right by vote to recall 

 the commission, or any member of it, at any 

 time, if displeased with his official conduct. 

 They also have the right to veto the commis- 

 sion's acts through the referendum, and to 

 originate legislation by means of the initiative. 

 Candidates for the commissionership seek elec- 

 tion as citizens, on policies, or platforms, of 

 their own suggestion, not as partisans on a 

 party platform. Instead of being accountable 

 to a political party, they may be called to 

 account only by the people who elect them. 



The commission form of government has now 

 been adopted by over 400 cities. Of the 229 

 cities with over 25,000 population, eighty were 

 governed under this plan at the beginning of 

 1917. 



Related Subjects. Every city in the United 

 States at the beginning of 1917 which had 

 adopted the commission plan is on record in 

 these volumes as a commission city. Reference 



